Canberra father dies after being struck by semi-trailer on Federal Highway

A 30-year-old Canberra father died after allegedly being struck by a semi-trailer on the Federal Highway at Bywong, near Lake George, last week, just three weeks after his family welcomed their newborn daughter.

Harsh Sharma, an Indian national who had been living in Canberra with his wife and children for several years, was allegedly hit by the truck on the night of September 3. He died at the scene.

According to The Canberra Times, Sharma was a healthcare employee and a father of two young daughters. His family had welcomed their second daughter only three weeks before his death.

Harkirat Singh, a childhood friend of Sharma, described the incident as an "incredibly painful" time for the family.

"Only three weeks earlier, Harsh and his family had welcomed their beautiful newborn daughter into the world. What should have been one of the happiest chapters of their lives has suddenly become a period of unimaginable grief," Singh told The Canberra Times from Sydney. "Harsh passed away suddenly and tragically at just 30 years old, leaving behind his loving wife and two beautiful little daughters."

Sharma's remains are being prepared for repatriation to his hometown in Punjab, India, where his parents live. Friends in Australia, led by Singh, have launched a crowdfunding campaign to help cover the cost of repatriating Sharma's remains and support his widow and two young children.

Emergency services were called to the Federal Highway near Bungendore Road, about 25km northeast of Canberra, at around 9.40pm on September 3.

"Officers attached to Monaro Police District attended and found a pedestrian had been struck by a semi-trailer truck. The pedestrian, a man believed to be aged in his 30s, died at the scene," a NSW Police spokesperson said.

A section of the Federal Highway was closed for several hours as police established a crime scene, with traffic diverted onto the Old Federal Highway.

Nick Shelley, 38, who was returning to Sydney from a meeting in Canberra, drove past the crash site minutes after the incident.

"Yeah, it was a shock to see," Shelley said. "A very large number of cars had pulled over and were rendering assistance to the victim. Several semi-trailers had also pulled over with their hazard lights on. It was a very dark patch of road."

Investigators from the Crash Investigation Unit examined the circumstances surrounding the collision. The truck driver, a man in his 30s, was taken to Canberra Hospital for mandatory testing.

NSW Police later confirmed that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding Sharma's death and that no charges had been laid.